The Indiana Pacers shocked the NBA world by making it all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals last season for the first time in a decade. However, to Pacers fans, their deep playoff earlier this year was not too surprising.
Last season, the Pacers ended the year with a 47-35 record, their best since the 2018-19 season. Additionally, trading for former NBA champion Pascal Siakam during the season immediately moved them closer to title contention. The team also saw natural progression from many of its players, most notably from new Olympic gold medalist Tyrese Haliburton.
Despite ultimately losing to the Boston Celtics in a four-game sweep, the Pacers gave the eventual champions their hardest challenge of the postseason in the Eastern Conference Finals.
This summer, the team did very little to improve the team on paper. The Pacers drafted Johnny Furphy and signed James Wiseman, but they did not make any other notable external moves in the offseason. They did, however, re-sign Pascal Siakam and Obi Toppin, and they signed breakout guard Andrew Nembhard to a contract extension.
The Pacers are expecting more natural progression from the players currently on their roster. Considering they were four wins away from their first NBA Finals appearance since 2000, this may be the right move. However, with the rest of the Eastern Conference getting better this offseason, it does not bode well for Indiana's immediate success.
Bleacher Report predicts a one-win decrease for the Pacers in the 2024-25 season
In a recent article for Bleacher Report, writer Andy Bailey gave his win-loss record predictions for each team in the NBA. When it came time to discuss the Pacers, Bailey said that he believes much of last year's success was "a little inflated" due to the injuries the Milwaukee Bucks and New York Knicks suffered in the playoffs.
However, he also mentioned that the Pacers are still a great team that should firmly stay in playoff contention next season. Bailey predicted a 46-36 record for the team, which is one game worse than they performed last season, but he did acknowledge that they could make his prediction "look silly."
According to Bailey, the Celtics, Knicks, Bucks, Philadelphia 76ers, Orlando Magic, and Cleveland Cavaliers will all have a better record in the Eastern Conference than the Pacers next season.
The Pacers are used to being the underdogs by this point. Hopefully for the team and their fans, their play next season will prove once and for all that they are a legitimate threat and will be for a long time.